Or perhaps you know me?

I've joined in on the fun that is Secret Pal 5 and have recently been "introduced" to my pal. It's a bit spooky to think of a complete stranger lurking about your site for the sole purpose of knowing you better. Sniffing in the garbage articles and investigating into the sultry archives. And you worry: Did she understand the underlying humor of that one post? Will she read too much into that one joke? Will I be penalized (he he) for any of Matty's posts?!

To satisfy my secret pal's need for information and, well honestly - because it's a required part of the whole SP5 rules, the Read More portion of this post is brought to you by the letter "I."

Secret Pal 5 Personal Survey
Alternative title: Vague and indirect quips as answers for general questions as a way to try to quickly know me better

1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you?
   Not a snob at all, I heartedly enjoy it all. Sure, who doesn't enjoy the nicer things in life, but I appreciate and like Lion Brand and the other "common" brands. But Red Heart? Not so much.
2. Do you spin? Crochet?
   No and nope. My attempts at crochet scare the children and make the animals cry (or vice versa).
3. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.)
   No, although some people make me break out in biatch.
4. How long have you been knitting?
   Two glorious, fiber-filled years. (Really - it's amazing the quantities that can accumulate in a relative short period of time.)
5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
   Yes. (Pretty straight forward, eh?)
6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)
   Clean scents, typically water-related: rain, ocean, sea... Also like vanilla, but not too sweet and cloying. Not big on the floral scents.
7. Do you have a sweet tooth?
   Uh... Yeah?! Except for licorice and peach, I'm a huge (pun intended) fan of sweet, sugary goodness. Especially dark chocolate. Mmmmm... (oops, I may have drooled on my keyboard.)
8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?
   At some point or another, I've probably done it (or have plans to). I sew and quilt, although I've let the dust settle on my Singer lately. Next big project plans are to play with silk screen printing - fun!
9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
   Yes, I am iPod and MP3 active. As for what music I listen to? A broad range of most everything, except heavy metal and hard-core rap. I bit of shame goes into my enjoyment of obscure/bizarre musicals. (A trait I picked up from Bonez, I'm sure.)
10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?
    As much as I love citrusy colors (lemon, lime, and tangerine), they make me look dead or jaundiced and can only be used sparingly. I like bright, saturated colors; dislike muddy, murky colors.
11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
    I am married to my best friend, and we share three fat cats and two aquariums, freshwater community and cichlids.
12. What are your life dreams? (really stretching it here, I know)
    To raise a happy and healthy family, possibly on a small personal farm-like land, and be able to supplement our groceries with gardening. Oh, and there'll be a hammock! And perhaps I'll figure out how to grow Swiss Cake Rolls on trees!
13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?
    There are always those brands that make great yarn, like Rowan, Debbie Bliss, and Lorna Laces. I also like yarn with character, like homespun. Big into good cotton and cotton-blends here in TX.
14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
    Scatchy wool. And it's not that I'm anti-novelty yarn, but let's just say that I could entertain a party of 9-yr old girls, a collective of clowns, and a band of raccoons (shiny baubles) and still have novelty yarn for years to come.
15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?
    If you can have an obsession without actually knitting any of the item, then socks would be it. Perhaps I'll actually finish more than one some day.
16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
    Socks, but again I have yet to get some on the needles. And I really like sweaters and tanks. Sure, it's more work, but the magic (not that kind of magic, Chris) that occurs when the flat, bland pieces are seamed into something wonderful is, well... wonderful.
17. What are you knitting right now?
    White Lies Design Shapely Tank, Haiku baby sweater, and I've been carrying around two unstarted pairs of socks. (Sad, no?)
18. What do you think about ponchos?
    I don't. If you force me to think about them, I believe they're good for little girls. I'm an old-fashion cardigan girl, myself.
19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?
    No pref. I like and use them both. I have more straight needles from an eBay windfall early in my knitting life.
20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
    Yes, yes, and yes. Again, I like and use 'em all. Usually it depends on what I'm knitting and what yarn I'm using. The right tool for the right job, as it's been know.
21. Are you a sock knitter?
    Huh... tricky question. I've got the yarn. I've got some patterns. I've got the know-how. Nothing to explain why I don't have some socks on the needles or done. Easy answer is "yes", unless you ask me for proof.
22. How did you learn to knit?
    From a friend and her book. Then I picked up a children's learn-to-knit book, and then some more books. And then learned from friends, and books, and so on and so on. I am still learning.
23. How old is your oldest UFO?
    About 1 1/2 yrs old. Pretty much since I started knitting with good results. And then there's all those projects and yarns bought specifically for a project that got bumped by other projects, etc. Just because they never physically got ON the needles...
24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?
    If you haven't guessed yet, I'm really sucky at naming favorites. Um.. Smurfs, Chococat, and anything amusing and kewl.
25. What is your favorite holiday?
    Halloween - the costumes, the candy, the debauchery! Oh, my!
26. Is there anything that you collect?
    Smurfs. Bonez is really the collector in the family: PEZ, lunchboxes, computers.
27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
    No knitting subscriptions... yet. I only have subscriptions to ReadyMade and Make (both DIY zines).
28. Any books out there you are dying to get your hands on?
    Man, that seems kind of drastic. If there was a book that I wanted this badly, I'd probably just go and buy it. I'm instant-gratificationy like that. There are some that I'm interested in, but haven't bought cause, well, I obviously wasn't dying, was I?

Phew - that was a lot of work and a lot of text. If you're not my secret pal and you've made it this far... get a life!! Sheesh!

No really. Thanks for reading and the interest. Hope you learned your lesson. Knit those socks already.

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